


Dream Come True

by Kheru



Category: RWBY
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-17
Updated: 2020-08-01
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:14:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 14,178
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24770683
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kheru/pseuds/Kheru
Summary: The first fanfic I ever wrote, originally titled "RWBY Bumbleby", that I decided to re-work and republish on here. Just some fluffy Bumbleby with a side of White Rose, mostly self-indulgent.
Relationships: Blake Belladonna/Yang Xiao Long, Ruby Rose/Weiss Schnee
Comments: 4
Kudos: 54





	1. Shenanigans

It was a warm late afternoon at Beacon, the setting sun lazily trailing its rays through the dorm window. The room was quiet as Blake perused through one of her favourite books for the umpteenth time, knowing exactly how the story would go and still delighted to find hints she hadn’t seen before among the early pages. All in all, it was a great day and a great moment.

She was alone in the shared quarters of Team RWBY, as both Ruby and Weiss had stayed behind a little, and Yang had, as usual, ran off to the gym to spend some of the energy she had pent up sitting still for an entire day. Still, she had kept her bow on, and made sure to stay focused enough on the outside world that no sudden twitch of her ears would betray her. She had no idea when her teammates would barge in, after all. It was frustrating, the cloth weighing heavily on her feline appendages, but she had learnt to live with it. She was about there in her thoughts when the door opened loudly, letting in a very pouty Ruby and a slightly annoyed Weiss, both visibly in the middle of an argument on their next course of action.

“Weiss, come on! I’m soooo hungry….”

“You do realize we have an insane amount of homework to do, right?” the heiress answered, half grumbling as she put down a handful of notes on their shared desk.

“But I won’t learn anything on an empty stomach! Besides, we’ve already studied plenty!”

Weiss rolled her eyes, loudly sighing as if to emphasize her very visible annoyance, before nodding slowly to the utter delight of her brunette partner. Both then proceeded to make their way to the cafeteria, the younger almost vibrating as she refrained from using her super-speed, and if Blake hadn’t known better, she could have sworn Weiss was smiling as she closed the door once more.

She had apparently gone completely unnoticed by the pair. That, or they had seen no point in trying to drag her along, knowing that she would most likely decline the offer to keep reading. She flicked her eyes back to the pages, trying to find where she had left and ready to immerse herself in the fantastical world again when she was pulled out of her thoughts by the sound of the door clicking shut. She sent a brief glance over her book, half expecting to see Weiss coming back for her notes to ‘make their cafeteria trip more productive’ as she had been known to do before, only to find a grinning, mischievous Yang leaning against the door.

“Oh, Blake, you’re here! Good! Can I ask you something?”

“Sure, what is it?” she said slowly, putting down her book as Yang took a few steps toward their bunk bed. Something told her she wouldn’t do much more reading today.

“I’m declaring war on Ruby and Weiss,” she replied, somehow grinning even wider.

“You… what?”

“Prank war! Ruby won the last one, and it’s been long enough she thinks I have forgotten. Normally I wouldn’t include Weiss, but let’s face it, Ice Queen needs to laugh a little.”

“Are you sure it’s that good of an idea?” Blake had raised one of her eyebrows sceptically, unimpressed by the brawler’s enthusiasm.

She was, however, trying her darndest not to stare at Yang’s exposed arms and midriff, her workout clothes a tad bit too revealing. Blake knew her partner packed a punch, she knew for a fact that the blonde spent several hours training and several others simply exercising to blow off some steam. Yet, it was an entirely different thing to see exactly how defined her muscles were, rolling under her skin as she oozed confidence, her knuckles slightly bruising where her fists had made contact with a training bag she had, without a doubt, completely destroyed.

“Hello? Earth to Blake! Are you in or not?” Yang smirked knowingly, a twinkle in her eyes that almost dared her partner to ask her to repeat.

“Why not?” she stalled, once again thanking her mind for remembering what had been said even though she had only half-listened. “They’re both going to tear us down, but the look on their face is sure to be worth it. Although we will have to wipe the floor afterwards.”

“I knew I could count on you!”

She rolled her eyes at Yang’s antics, even more so when she noticed the finger guns aimed her way. Then, out of nowhere, her partner held two buckets a quarter full with cold water. She had visibly anticipated Blake’s answer and the black-haired girl pondered for a second what would have happened had she refused to help. Something told her she could very well have found herself on the receiving end of the buckets.

She took one of the buckets, throwing another ‘I should be exasperated but it’s kind of cute’ look toward the chipper woman that was now taking her place on one side of the door, before joining her on the opposite end of the entrance. Was it childish? Yes. Would she sigh later as she had to wipe the floor before the water could do any damage? Yes. Was it worth it?

Yang briefly muffled a chuckle, and she knew the answer was yes.

Straining her ears for any sign of the red and white pair, she readied her semblance as they had agreed, not wanting their target to realize something was wrong until the last second. They had also placed a pile of dry towels on the desk and made sure there was plenty of warm water for both girls later on. They wanted to pull a prank, not give them a cold, and they certainly wouldn’t have risked Weiss’ ire carelessly soaking the two.

A little while later, she heard footsteps. Far enough that they wouldn’t have turned the corridor’s corner yet, and accompanied by the very excited rambling of Ruby theorizing about Dust applications in relation with various weapons. Leave it to Weiss to find a way to weaponize Ruby’s love of weapons into learning enough to ace the tests on Dust studies.

She briefly nodded toward her partner in crime, one of her clones suddenly materializing on the bed where she was a few minutes ago, reading calmly as if nothing had changed. Both readied their buckets, biting their lips as they fought the urge to giggle, and for a short moment Blake wondered which of the two Yang hoped would be on her side. Sure, the brawler wanted to get back at her younger sister… but something told her she secretly hoped to get Weiss, if only to see the heiress’ first reactions. Both of their teammates stepped through the door, Ruby’s gaze briefly flicking to the fake Blake reading before she resumed her talking, both completely oblivious to the imminent doom of water rushing their way as the black and yellow pair had jumped to action.

With a very loud ‘SPLASH!’ and a high pitched shriek from a terrified Ruby that was now wearing the bucket as a hat in addition to being completely drenched, the pranksters made a show of high-fiving in front of their poor victims, a very satisfied smile plastered on both their faces. It took a little longer for the surprise to drain from Weiss’s expression, shock slowly bleeding out to mildly infuriated annoyance as she put two and two together to understand exactly what had happened. Ruby’s expression was masked, but the rapid swivelling of the bucket was, in and on itself, confusedly hilarious.

“Really Blake?” Weiss sighed, pointedly looking at her as she tried her best to avoid her glare. “I would have expected that from Yang, not from you.”

Yang snorted lightly, her hand flying in front of her mouth to prevent the laughter Blake could see rising… and could feel bubbling in her as well, as she finally noticed that Ruby, in her surprise, had jumped into Weiss’ arms. And Weiss had apparently not noticed since she still was holding her soaked, bucket wearing partner. She exchanged a brief glance with her co-conspirator, and it was enough for the both of them to break their composure, laughter spilling out of them and doubling down as Weiss glared at them, visibly trying to understand the sudden outburst.

Until Ruby shifted in her arms that is, and realisation dawned on her. She went beet red in all of a second, sputtering as she struggled to find some kind of retort before finally giving up. She opened her mouth, arms and hands, unable to form a coherent sentence and sending Ruby tumbling to the floor, the young leader yelping at the sudden fall and promptly laughing along with Blake and Yang.

“You won’t get away this easily!” Weiss muttered, still beet red, as she grabbed one of the towels graciously presented by Yang as a peace offering and storming off toward the showers.

It took Ruby a while longer to stop laughing and pick herself up from the floor, but eventually she did and the duo left behind then went on to clean up the mess they had made. It didn’t take long, as they had purposefully put very little water in the buckets proper, and soon they found themselves idle again.

“Man, that was fun… We’re going to regret this at some point, but have you seen Weiss’ face? Priceless!”

Blake simply nodded along, the blonde’s enthusiasm almost contagious.

“Say, how about we keep this momentum and head out? I may know a few places we could hang out. If you’re up for it, kitty cat?”

She instantly froze, heart beating painfully in her chest as she stared at Yang, panic slowly rising. She resisted the urge to flatten her ears, in the off chance that this was but a coincidence, and carefully studied Yang’s expression, trying to see if she knew or not. Had she betrayed herself? Could Yang know about her… heritage?

“Wow, okay, noted, no pet names!” the brawler suddenly backtracked, raising her hands as if to appease her. “Sorry I said that it’s just that your bow kinda looks like cat ears, and you have like, ninja reflexes. Also, I have a thing for nicknames?”

“It’s okay.” She took a deep breath, convincing herself that she was safe and that she had not been made. Yet. “You surprised me, that’s all. As for your offer, why not? The night is young.”

She would have expected to have to force a smile and was thus very surprised when it came naturally. It seemed Yang just had that kind of effect on her, and she rolled her eyes once again while her partner excused herself to get into more appropriate clothes for the evening. She shot a brief glance outside, and upon seeing the sun firmly hidden beneath the horizon, decided that she should probably get changed into something slightly warmer at least. Grabbing her white jacket, she then waited for Yang to come back, not missing the slight glare Weiss sent her way when she announced their plans to the rest of the team. She had half a mind to apologize to the heiress some more but was interrupted by a very eager Yang coming back to the room with two helmets under her arms.

“Ready to go?” the blonde asked as she tossed the cherry-red protection toward her.

“As I’ll ever be.”

“Off we go then! See ya Weiss, try not to murder us in our sleep when we get back!” She ducked out of the way, laughing when the pillow Ruby had thrown her way hit the wall with a soft thump.

“This is war, Yang Xiao Long, and you know it! Be ready, for my revenge will be terrible!” Ruby exclaimed, aiming a second pillow at Blake. “And you will suffer it too, Blake, for traitorous crimes against your team leader!”

Laughing, she sidestepped the fluffy projectile as well, slipping into the corridor and briefly jogging to catch up with Yang that had waited for her outside of the pillow-throwing range. They both chuckled lightly, making their way toward the student parking as Yang theorized what Ruby’s vengeance could entail exactly.

They soon found themselves near Bumblebee, Yang’s precious motorcycle, and Blake hastily clasped the helmet on top of her bow, refraining from wincing as her ears were forcefully flattened against her skull. Yang raised an eyebrow at her but didn’t comment, instead jumping on the bike, lightly tapping the seat behind her. With a little apprehension, Blake sat down as well, and gingerly placed her arms around the brawler’s waist.

All thought abruptly ceased as soon as the bike’s engine roared to life however, the motorcycle practically jumping out of the parking lot and onto the underground road that would bring them into the city. Careful not to squeeze all life out of her driver’s torso, she did her best to look forward and not worry too much for the rest of the trip. Wherever they were headed.


	2. Starred Road

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some soul-searching under the stars... And a tangle of feelings Yang struggles to keep for herself

The roar of the engine, the tar of the road whipping below, and the infinite black of a sky speckled with stars overhead… Once again, Yang truly tasted the sense of freedom that only ever came with the breeze of high speeds on a motorcycle, and odd peace settling in her heart as she felt completely in control for a moment. She had always loved speed, and more so the rush of adrenaline and danger that would pump in her veins as soon as she would hit the road, but she had slowly realized it was the brief glimpse of absolute freedom she chased more than anything. Riding out, especially at night, always cleared her mind. That or a good fight, but there were only so many people you could fight, while the roads were always open.

There was a beauty to the city at night as well, the shattered moon softly glistening against towers and spires of steel and glass, dull blue or yellow streetlamps bravely fighting off the darkness. The way every single noise echoed slightly in the deserted alleys, the countless closed shops and the numerous windows still illuminated, people slowly getting ready for the night in all corners of the town. There were a few people still in the streets too, working late or heading out for a party. People living, but in a quiet, reserved sort of way you simply didn’t see when the sun was above the horizon.

If she had been alone, she might have just spent her evening riding her bike in any random direction, only stopping to admire a particular vantage point or to head back once she would have put a semblance of order in her thoughts and feelings. But feeling Blake’s arms slightly tighten around her waist and her head hesitantly resting atop her left shoulder, she was reminded that she wasn’t alone and that the experience was probably slightly less pleasant for her partner, clutching to her as she was. Eyes jumping from an advertisement to a sign sporting the street name, she started thinking. She had said she knew several places, and she did! But something in the back of her mind told her that Blake wouldn’t be a big fan of the crowd and loud music she tended to flock to, and she was intent on making tonight a great time for the both of them. Even if that included raking her mind to find something to do that wasn’t closed at this hour, and not too raucous either.

An idea slowly formed in her mind, as she carefully eyed the various street signs that told her where she was headed, and she made a sharp turn to the right, earning her a tight squeeze as the bike had dangerously tilted toward the road in the process. She refrained from biting her lip at the last second, barely remembering that a bump in the road could make a lot of damage if she let herself give in to the nervous tic, and mentally planned the rest of their trip. It would take a little while longer to bring them away from the tallest buildings and into the quieter neighbourhoods, but she hoped the place she had in mind would make up for it.

She was growing more and more nervous with each second passing, constantly second-guessing her decision. It was, truth be told, quite an odd destination for a late evening outing, and she hoped Blake wouldn’t get too suspicious or weirded out because of it. She muttered under her breath, slightly tensing when she felt her partner shift behind her, before relaxing as the logical part of her mind reminded her that there was no way Blake could have heard any of that. Not with the loud purr of the engine accompanying their trip. Once again resisting the urge to shake her head, she stuck her eyes to the road and decided to be twice as careful to avoid the holes. The path they were taking was… less used than the majority of the city, to be polite.

Soon enough, they found themselves riding along a tightly woven wall of trees, a true forest invading what once was a park and yet, not even a leaf was stepping out of the neatly lined enclosure. Somehow, it felt like the city had left the vegetation to conquer this particular block, but stubbornly refused to let it encroach on the rest of the space, roots cut abruptly and an old, sturdy brick wall circling its entirety. Yang was looking for the entrance, and she soon found it: the rusty iron gate stood between two brick columns having been left open long enough for one of the trees to have partially grown around it, effectively locking it open.

She slowed the engine, mindlessly jumping from her seat and pushing the bike slightly deeper in the parc, knowing there was a little clearing ahead where she could secure Bumblebee for the evening. All the while, Blake was looking around and hesitantly stepping forward, her eyes briefly latching onto the vine-covered plaque naming the place and a question evident in the way her eyebrows shot up. Grabbing the red helmet presented to her, Yang then proceeded to tie both headwears to a nearby branch, briefly surprised that Blake’s bow was standing atop her head perfectly if a little bit crumpled. Had she straightened it? She shrugged the question aside, it wasn’t very important at the moment. Not when compared to her nerves skyrocketing that is.

“There’s a quaint little place with a river and a nice cliff a little further in. It’s quite a sight, I figured you might enjoy it.” She vaguely gestured behind her, trying her best not to show how worried she was.

It was undoubtedly weird. Right? She was just being creepily weird and it wouldn’t take long before Blake asked to go back to Beacon. Probably. What was she thinking? Bringing her somewhere because she knew there would be no one else around? What level of creepy was that even?

“Well, that’s very sweet of you,” Blake smiled slightly. “Even if it’s not what I was expecting.”

“Yeah, I, uh… figured loud music and loud people weren’t really your thing, so I thought it would be nicer here than at a nightclub,” she blurted out, sheepishly rubbing the back of her neck. “The park is nice though, it’s like the Emerald Forest without the Grimm trying to kill you.”

“I’m sure I’ll love it, Yang.”

“Great!” she perked up, still very much nervous but slightly relieved she wasn’t being too weird after all. “I’ll lead the way then!”

With an exaggerated bow that earned a chuckle from her raven-haired partner, she started making her way through the overgrown vegetation, the parc proper long forgotten under the roots and the grass. Mindlessly following a path that had been committed to memory long ago, she couldn’t help but mull over her thoughts. She wasn’t blind, nor completely obvious… it was clear that she felt differently about Blake. And not just because she was her partner either – there was an extra skip in her step when she thought about the girl, a little more colour on her face and a little more heat in her cheeks.

There was just something about Blake, her quiet mirth and her twinkling eyes… The way she carried herself, confident but not prideful, the sly smile she’d wear whenever she was about to outsmart someone, the affectionate annoyance she showed every time Yang would make one of her terrible jokes. The respect and trust she had for Ruby, the patience she endlessly offered to Weiss, the mischief she could wield to help Yang. There was something about Blake, something she was perhaps quite afraid of naming.

Or maybe there was something about herself, that made her heart race whenever the dark-haired woman would smile, something that kicked her mind into overdrive and made her a nervous wreck.

Yang was no stranger to flirting, on the opposite, priding herself on her clever pick-up lines and knowing very well she was turning a few heads. And yet, she felt completely out of her depth. It was one thing to harmlessly flirt, half-heartedly flattering random flings she knew would have little to no consequence no matter their answer… It was another to see herself fall deeper and deeper, uncontrollably and undoubtedly in-

Her thoughts abruptly skidded to a halt as they had made it to the larger clearing in the centre of the block, a small river silently sliding between a soft bank of dark sand and an abrupt cliff overlooking the water. A nocturnal bird cried in the distance, briefly breaking the silence, and the crickets around quieted down far a while, before slowly picking up the pace, thinking they were safe from the winged predator. It took her a little moment to push down her feelings, muffling the little voice in the back of her head that was trying to be very stupid and talk to Blake. She used that moment to climb down the small ledge separating the trees from the clearing proper, head stubbornly held down as she tried to school her expression.

All her efforts were blown a mere seconds later, as she lent a hand to her partner to help her down the abrupt decline. She could feel her blood boil, her Semblance somehow changing her into a portable heat source as she tried her best not to think about how soft Blake’s skin was.

It was going to be a long evening.


	3. Faith

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fooling around in a deserted parc at night. What better moment to do some more soul-searching? And embarrass yourself greatly.
> 
> Aka: Yang may be a mess, but so is Blake

Stumbling forward as the tip of her boot caught on a particularly sneaky root, Blake was thankful for the hand Yang had shot her way a little while ago, heavily leaning against her partner as her equilibrium was broken. Of course, there was a little voice in the back of her head telling her she most likely wouldn’t have stumbled if she hadn’t been so distracted by the blonde in the first place, but… she chose to ignore it.

Near-perfect night vision should have helped her see exactly where she was walking, but instead she couldn’t tear her eyes away from the cascade of hair standing between her and Yang’s eyes. She almost felt like she was pointedly hiding behind her hair, and that added to the nervousness she could almost feel radiating in waves from her partner had her worried. What on earth could make Yang, of all people, nervous?

In all honesty, Yang fiddling with her hair and hiding was not the only thing that prevented her from focusing on her path. She had to admit, begrudgingly, that the heat that also radiated from the blonde along with the worry was plenty distracting, a beacon of warmth in the cold evening – night? – and it took her a very conscious effort not to press against her partner’s side to shelter from the light breeze blowing past them. Silently cursing Yang’s semblance and her own hatred of cold, her gaze was forced upward as the warmth of her hand left her almost regretfully, the rough patch of ground crossed.

It was… Beautiful wouldn’t cut it. Magnificent, peaceful perhaps. The clearing formed an almost perfect circle, slightly elongated to follow the river. The quiet mutter of the water lazily trailing down accompanied the soft chirping of insects, the few trees bravely standing alone almost covered in luminescent bugs. The stars shone bright overhead, a thin and delicate cloud almost patching up the cracks in the broken moon and the soft light glistening on what seemed to be every blade of grass, every grain of sand along the riverbank, every movement in the water. The noises of the city were long forgotten, almost absolute silence wrapping around the place like a comforting blanket, only broken by the reassuring sounds of nature.

Blake took a second to breathe deeply, closing her eyes and truly enjoying the calm and beauty of the surroundings. She was so used to running, and fighting, and always staying alert… It was almost odd, to remember that not all forest we riddled with man-hunting creatures and bloodthirsty monsters. When she opened her eyes again, it was only to find Yang staring at her, the ghost of a soft smile delicately hovering her features.

“Yang, this place is…”

“Ah-ah,” she interrupted softly but firmly. “Don’t say it yet, you haven’t been up the cliff. Race you there?”

And with that, she had to incredulously watch mischief flicker in her partner’s eyes, the softness rapidly replaced by excited competitiveness. Mere seconds before said partner took off running, a wicked smile on her lips and a brief taunt in the air as she made her way toward the river – and the aforementioned cliff. A few precious seconds of stunned silence went by before she felt a smile of her own creep on her face and started running toward their goal.

“Oh, no you don’t!”

Had she muttered, exclaimed or simply thought it? There was no telling as she rushed toward the water, expertly assessing the terrain and finding a path that would allow her to stay dry. She heard Yang’s laugh as she jumped from rock to rock, leaping unlikely distances and almost slipping in her efforts to avoid the water she guessed was freezing. A brief glance sideways taught her that she had almost caught up with the blonde and that her partner had no such qualm about the river and was doing her best to run across, her efforts slightly hindered by the water that almost reached her knees.

With a laugh of her own she kept leaping forward, trying her best to avoid the large splashes of cold liquid Yang threw around her as she doubled down on her efforts, both girls nearing the small cliff roughly around the same time. Then begun the climbing, once again exposing the stark differences between their methods. Blake had chosen a path that went almost straight up the cliff, knowing full well that it would take her through smooth and slippery patches where she would have to fight to even find something to grab, while Yang was already snaking on the rock, relying on much easier and evident hold. She was however, grabbing and releasing and jumping, her speed almost reckless if not for the fact that the cliff itself wasn’t very high, and that the ground below was entirely made of malleable sand.

Very few words were exchanged during their vertical ascension, both of them saving their breath as they playfully tried to out-run one another. All of them were jokes and half-hearted taunts.

They both reached the top roughly at the same time, grabbing the ledge and almost immediately collapsing on the soft grass, wheezing puddles of laughter as they realized how absurd the last fifteen minutes had been. Their fit of hilarity might also have been chalked to the fact they had both exclaimed in victory exactly at the same time, the two girls so absolutely certain they had outrun the other.

“Oh, brothers…” Blake slipped in between two giggles. “Did we really just climb-race a cliff in the middle of the night? What time is it even?”

“No idea, but it sure beats every nightclub, like ever,” Yang replied just outside of her peripheral vision.

“I can almost see Weiss’ scold if she had seen us. And hear the hour-long rant about how childish and reckless we are.” She chuckled, the mental image quite vivid.

“Oh, ye of little faith! I’m sure our Snowflake would have raced with us. Complaining, of course, because when does she ever not complain, but she would have climbed that cliff, and I’m willing to bet she would have been all smug about it too.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, she’s made a lot of effort since you…“ _ran away_. Blake almost winced in guilt at the reminder, only calming down when she remembered she had done it so she wouldn’t betray herself or her origins. “…came back. Speaking of which, the blonde boy who brought you back, what was his name again?”

“Sun,” she answered without thinking, still mulling over her decision.

It had been a really close call that day, the heiress constantly pushing her buttons and demeaning the Faunus they met, however briefly… She had almost snapped, almost revealed she had been part of the White Fang, almost said “we” instead of “they”. She had, luckily, forcefully shut her complaint before it could begin, and ran away without saying another word, aware as she was of the mistake she was about to make. It had saved her secret for a little while longer, and when she had come back, Weiss had genuinely apologized, the events rapidly brushed aside as life went on.

“That’s the man! Seemed like a good guy, if annoying.”

“Understatement of the day! I’m half convinced he’s constantly trying to hit on me.”

“Oh.”

That wasn’t good. Yang sounded… disappointed? Deflated? Whatever it was, Blake found herself blabbering immediately to try and get rid of the sadness in her partner’s voice, thus barely thinking through the sentences that left her lips.

“Yeah, it’s going to be hard getting him to understand I’m not interested.”

“You’re… not?” the question was hesitant, surprised, as Yang rolled over to look at her instead of the night sky.

“He’s a nice friend, but really not my type,” she shrugged absentmindedly.

When she saw her partner’s eyes narrowing, she knew she had made a mistake. Feeling her own eyes widen abruptly in surprise, she wracked her brain for a way, any way to backtrack what she just had said before –

“So you do have a type.”

Aaaaand there it was, along with the wicked grin she had been afraid of.

“You’re not letting this go, are you?”

“I mean, if you really want me to, I could…” the blonde trailed off, gesturing vaguely elsewhere, before her gaze zeroed in on her once again, this damned smile still stretching her lips. “So what’s your type?”

Rolling her eyes at her for good measure, Blake took a second to think about it. The ‘not my type’ had been her go-to excuse for a little while now, but she had never really taken the time to think about what was and was not her type. The closest she had ever come to love had been… Adam. And merely thinking about it sent shivers down her spine, disgust and fear immediately clawing at her as she did her best to look serene.

She may have believed she was in love with Adam. But whatever it had been, it was neither love nor healthy.

She threw a rapid glance at Yang, her lavender eyes attentive and waiting, a hint of worry hidden beneath the very obvious enthusiasm, before rolling her eyes again and staring at the speckled night. What was her type? Cheerful, without a doubt. Happy and exuberant maybe. Kind, affectionate, strong, caring, gentle. Fierce. Protective. Blonde.

With soft lavender eyes.

Her breath caught in her throat as the brutality of the thought hit her like a punch in the gut. Heart beating increasingly faster, she fought against her emotions to keep a neutral face as she felt like a tornado had just gone through her mind, shattering the small sense of safety she had built for herself out of denial. Just gals being pal, hmm? She felt like crying or laughing at her own absurdity, only for the panic to win out, freezing her in terror.

It was evidently the best moment to realize she had been falling for her partner, hard.

She struggled to find words, panic increasing as she saw the worry slightly grow in Yang’s eyes and yet couldn’t find a reasonable answer. She thought of staying vague with her description, only to realize in horror that a ‘vague’ description would very much fit Sun as well, thus defeating the entire purpose. Yang opened her mouth to ask a second question, and she blurted out the first thing she could to regain some semblance of control over the conversation.

“Less short more skirt?”

The seconds the words registered in her brain along with Yang’s dumbfounded stare, her cheeks erupted in a beet-red blush. ‘More skirt’? Seriously? What had she even thought that could mean? She physically cringed, her right hand reflexively covering her face with a small ‘slap’ that sent Yang crashing to the ground, bursting with laughter. Before she could dwell further on her poor choice of words however, her partner’s giggles calmed down and she found herself looking at a teary-eyed smiling Yang between her fingers.

“That has got to be the weirdest way I’ve ever heard someone say they’re interested in girls.”

“You hear that a lot?” she raised an eyebrow, momentarily forgetting her embarrassment.

“Eh, it kind of just happens, especially when you’re openly gay and a member of a queer support group.” Blake opened and closed her mouth, frowning as she tried to recall Yang mentioning either of those and coming up empty. “So yeah, I heard a lot of euphemisms, but I’ve gotta say, that one is new.”

She was now fully grinning at Blake, laughter in her eyes and the slightest hint of teasing in her tone. Meanwhile, she was still opening and closing her mouth, trying her best to find a comeback and failing, embarrassment growing with each passing second along with a tinge of annoyance at how wordless Yang made her. Finally giving up with a frown, she crossed her arms and stubbornly stared at the fractured moon, eliciting a snort from her partner.

“For the record, that is NOT what I wanted to say.”

“Oh, I figured as much. Too bad that’s what I heard though, I’m never letting you live that one down.”

She groaned slightly, anticipating the teasing that would ensue without a doubt, and catching a hint of Yang’s smile from the corner of her eyes before she closed them.

“Thank you for telling me.” Yang’s voice had grown soft, all teasing gone. “I saw you worrying, and I just wanted to say I’m glad you trusted me. Oh, and if anyone ever gives you crap about this? I’ll take a page out of Nora’s book and break their knees.”

“Thank you, Yang. It means a lot.”

She almost jokingly added ‘Don’t go around breaking people legs though,’ before she caught Yang’s gaze. Yang’s very serious gaze. The blonde wasn’t fooling around, she really was ready to throw down with someone. Oddly, she felt a slight rush of affection for the girl at that, once again seeing her fierce protectiveness and knowing it rose from kindness and care.

They stayed under the stars for a little while longer, casually chatting or simply enjoying the calm and quiet side by side, laughing every now and then at one or the other’s joke. Or when a particularly high firefly was mistaken for a shooting star, until it started looping around and fell right on Yang’s hand, her pointed finger trying to show the ‘star’ to her partner. Conversation flew easily, and so did time, to the point that Yang almost jumped to her feet when she checked her scroll, realizing just how long they had been laying in the grass talking.

“We should probably head back.”

Nodding in agreement, Blake began to make her way down, this time at a much slower pace. There was no race ongoing after all… Then came the time to cross the river, and she chose to use the rocks once again. Something about the ice-cold water told her she’d much rather stay dry all the way through.

Her wandering mind, however, must have disagreed.

Lost in her thoughts as she was, her mindless jump from stone to stone was slightly miscalculated. She realized her mistake a split second too late, feet slipping as she lost her grip on the dampened rock, sending her cartwheeling toward the riverbed with increasing panic as she found nothing to hold onto.

The water was hopefully not that deep, and as soon as she found her footage, she almost jumped across the few remaining paces separating her from the bank, unable to refrain a very displeased scowl from forming. The water was even colder than she had imagined, and to make thing worse, she was now soaked head-to-toe as her fall had projected enough water to wet the part of her that hadn’t gone directly into the river. Her displeasure was interrupted by a snort, Yang’s hand unable to contain the giggles spilling out of her.

“Am I allowed to call you kitty-cat now?” she teased, crossing the remainder of the river. When all she got in the guise of an answer was a death glare, she laughed some more. “Here, let me help you with that.”

She then punched the palm of her hand, flaring her semblance and effectively warming the air around her by several degrees. It took a few minutes before Blake was considered ‘dry enough’ to hop back on the bike, the brawler refusing to let her make the trip in soaked clothes. Apparently, no one without a death wish would hop on a bike that way, since the wind was sure to freeze her to death in even less time than needed to do the first quarter of the trip.

They got back to Beacon without much more incident, finding both of their teammate asleep and wincing at the late hour. Yang went to sleep almost immediately, Blake deciding to swing back to take a boiling hot shower – the only temperature she deemed okay for water – before making her way back to her bed, not bothering to turn on the light on her scroll. She caught a brief glimpse of Weiss, sleeping with a textbook she had probably been reading minutes before she fell asleep, and took a slight detour to remove the brick from the mattress. Sleeping with a book was never comfortable, she knew from experience.

Then, too tired to think, she collapsed on her bed and fell in dreams of her own, lulled by the sound of Ruby’s light snoring.


	4. Forming Habits

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A slightly longer chapter, to make up for the fact I already broke my publication / writing rhythm. An everyday discussion turns abruptly serious, without either of the two girls really planning for it

Their little nocturnal escapade soon became a habit. Days went by slowly, and they found themselves back atop the deserted cliff more often than not, although they did also visit busier and nosier places sometimes. Yang had made a point to avoid Junior’s club, feeling like showing her face there would lead to nothing but a headache – although she had half a mind to take Blake there and unwind a little by wiping the floor with a few foolish goons. They had visited other, quainter places, alternating between nightclub that were NOT a meeting place for illegal activity and small coffees with silent patrons, and yet, they almost always found themselves back to the parc. Sometimes to sober up, sometimes just to be silly and childish – they still hadn’t determined who was the fastest climber, both reaching the top at the same moment every time. Most of the time, it was just to talk.

It was nice too, just laying down in the grass, talking about all and nothing. Ruby’s latest idea, Weiss’ gradually nicer attitude, classes, projects, hopes. Sometimes the past. Not too often though, it seemed to be quite a sore spot for the both of them, not untrusting but simply too hurt to do more than mention it in passing. She had felt like Blake was opening up too, the raven-haired girl’s voice steadier and calmer whenever she knew for a fact no one but Yang could hear. Not only that, but there was something in the harmless competition and the mischievous smile she saw more and more, something in the way her jaded expression seemed to crumble under her puns. Something that inexplicably ached, as she wondered what in the world could have taken such a pretty laugh away.

Most of the time it was her offering to head out – she was the one driving after all – and she had feared for a while that she was being pushy, overwhelming. Blake had effortlessly and quietly dismissed her concerns, simply asking if she felt like taking a trip under the street lights whenever she felt too shy and self-conscious to offer it herself. She felt a sly smile stretch her lips, her heart rushing a beat or two for the girl who was so effortlessly attentive, so discreetly affectionate, before her eyes went back to the celestial veil overhead. The night was growing old, a few clouds hanging in front of the moon and dampening its light. They had been laying in the grass for a little while, simply enjoying the calm, the stars and each other’s presence, but as often, Yang found herself breaking the silence. She liked the quiet quite alright, but she still had a preference for their conversations.

“You think Ruby and Weiss are worrying?”

“About what, us?”

“Mmh.”

“No, we told them where we were and when we would get back. If anything, I’m willing to bet they’re glad for the extra time planning their revenge.”

She chuckled lightly, the image of a nefariously planning Weiss briefly dancing in her mind, before she recalled the events of the day.

“I’m not so sure about that, I already got a taste of Ruby’s ‘revenge’,” she pondered slowly.

It had in fact been a very clever revenge. She would have been very proud of her sister, was she not busy grumbling at how she had been fooled…

“I’m not even sure how she did that.”

“Did what?”

“Oh, right! You weren’t at practice, it was supposed to be a sister’s spar. To make it short, she somehow snuck magnets into Ember Celica.”

“She did what?” Blake had risen on her elbow, emphasizing the way her eyebrow had shot up with a wide-eyed stare.

“She put magnets in my bracelets. And you know how I am before a fight… I was getting angry at that poor weapon, didn’t even stop to think about what would happen if I managed to separate and equip them…”

“You didn’t…?”

“Yes I did. Ruby was laughing so hard it took her a full minute to uncuff me and remove the magnets.” She nodded briefly, rolling her eyes. “So yeah, she got me pretty good. Unless I come up with something really clever, I think the pranks are done for a little while.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure…” Blake trailed off, suddenly looking everywhere but at her.

“Is there something you want to tell me, Blake Belladonna?” mild disbelief slipped into her tone, very much not expecting that answer.

“I may or may not have plotted a scheme of my own in retaliation.” A brief smirk.

“Oh, this is good… Tell me, what is it? And… retaliation for what?” she rolled over, facing her partner and suddenly very attentive.

“Well, Weiss didn’t wait very long to try and get her revenge.” Cringing slightly, she pursued. “I’ll admit she got me by replacing the tea in one of my bags with ground coffee.”

“No way… The ice queen pulled a prank?”

“Oh, not just one. Since I switched the sugar and the salt to teach her that one does not simply mess with tea… Breakfast had become a warzone.” Blake was sheepishly rubbing the side of her neck, pointedly avoiding her gaze as she did so.

“Wait… Is that why you two keep glaring at each other over your mugs? I thought it was because you disagreed on the other’s drink choice!”

“I will not confirm nor deny this accusation.” She huffed, briefly glancing at Yang from the corner of her eyes. “But you might want to avoid the strawberry jam tomorrow.”

And with that, Yang finally lost it. Her chuckle abruptly turned into full-blown laughter as the absurdity fully caught on to her. Collapsing back onto the ground, she took a deep breath, trying to calm down, in vain.

“I can’t- I just can’t… Ruby and I have been at war for decades and only make like, one or two pranks a month for the hell of it... But… You and Weiss have barely been included in it for a week, and you’re fighting tooth and nail? The Ice Queen and the quiet bookworm are having a worse prank war than the raucous sisters. That’s almost as absurd as-“

She abruptly silenced herself, mere seconds before she could spill out a secret that was not hers to share. She trusted Blake – literally with her life – but the recent developments of Ruby’s affection were not something she was allowed to tell. Not without express permission from the team leader first.

“As absurd as what?”

“I’m not supposed to tell, but… Blake Belladonna, are you POUTING at me?!”

“And what if I am?” she retorted defiantly, huffing slightly and very much pouting.

Yang was about half convinced she would be crossing her arms, had she not been propped up on her elbow.

“Oh, you’re wonderful,” she laughed again, starting to seriously feel the cramps in her stomach. “Dad would love you.”

Silence fell, and for a minute she thought they had simply reached the end of the conversation, that Blake didn’t know what to add, how to retort. This idea vanished instantly when she looked over at her partner and found a distant, forlorn look in her eyes, all smiles gone.

“Blake… are you okay? Is this something I said?” she had tried to keep her voice even, casual, but the slight tremor had betrayed her worry.

“Yes.” Her raven-haired partner briefly flicked a hand to her cheek, brushing an invisible strand of hair back behind her ear. The wet shine of her eyes couldn’t be wiped off that easily however, and it broke Yang’s heart immediately. “I mean, no, it’s not something you said, and I’m fine.”

A short pause. They both exchanged a glance, Yang not pressing or judging, simply smiling a little, hoping to convey as much comfort as she could wordlessly, not knowing… what she wanted to comfort Blake about exactly.

“Fine. I’m not really okay. It’s stupid, I just…”

Yang simply nodded in encouragement, biting back her defiant comment about how it certainly wasn’t stupid. Now was not the best moment.

“I was thinking about my parents. Your comment about your dad just made me think of mine.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“I don’t know, it’s… kind of a mess.” She sighed, finally giving up her fight against gravity and letting herself fall on her back, her eyes wistfully trailing over the stars above. “I haven’t talked to them in a while. I said something terrible the last time we talked, and I did worse since… At least if I don’t try to reach out then they don’t have to tell me they don’t want to talk to me.”

“Oh. Yeah, that sounds like a mess and a half.” An approbatory ‘mhm’ rose, followed by a sigh. “Do you want to talk about them… before? The good memories I mean.”

“That’s… Yeah, I think I’d like to.” A small smile. Improvement. “My father is… immense. Like, he’s probably two heads taller than you, even if you wore heels.”

“That’s saying something!” she whistled appreciatively, trying her best to picture this giant. How much would he look like Blake?

“He’s also very strong, mostly because he’s always helping. See, back home, we have some pretty ferocious Grimm, and he’s the one overlooking the village, helping with the construction and fighting off the beasts. That’s something I’ve always admired about him.”

“His strength?”

“His kindness. He’s always helping others, no matter how busy he is, or how hard or mundane the task. If a kid asked him to play he would do it without batting an eye, and somehow still help the neighbour with their leaky roof in the same afternoon.”

“Sounds like a great man. What about your mother?”

Blake’s eyes were still fixated on the night sky, completely oblivious to Yang’s insistent stare. There was something, both in the way she spoke of her father and how her smile had kept creeping larger and larger, something that told her that Blake parents likely weren’t mad at her for whatever she might have done. Something that, once combined with the jaded walls she had seen her put up and slowly break down, told her part of a story she didn’t like. Something that left a rancid taste in her mouth, and a simple promise she made to herself: whoever had hurt Blake? Would pay.

“She’s… many things. She shares my father’s kindness and drive to help others, that’s more or less how they met, but she’s a lot fiercer. It often surprises people!” A brief chuckle, another sigh. “She taught me so much. She taught me to swim and then fish, she taught me to walk and then run and then jump, and before long she taught me to fight and stand for what I believe in. When I was little, we had a game where she would move and I had to move in the exact same way…”

Blake was now smiling fully, her eyes glossing over as she recalled what seemed to be very fond memories, and Yang couldn’t help but smile too. All tension had bled out of the conversation gradually as her partner rambled about little things, and it was simply heart-warming to see such fondness, and most of all, such relaxation coming from the usually very guarded woman. She could almost picture it, a baby Blake sitting across an older, raven-haired woman with golden eyes, both staring intently at the other and moving in sync…

“She would always get me the same way,” Blake chuckled lightly. “She would shift her legs, and then move an arm, and while I was busy trying to figure out if I had placed my hand correctly, she would flick her ears, and-“

Silence. Abrupt, shocked silence, that startled Yang out of her smile and froze her train of thoughts long enough that it took a second for Blake’s words to register in her brain. For Blake’s panicked, wide golden eyes to register in her brain, the tension coming back so abruptly and fully she almost felt she would choke on it. Wracking her brain as to what might have caused such earth-shattering stop, she clumsily tried to put the conversation back on track.

“Flick her ears, and?”

Silence. Again. It was starting to grow uncomfortable, Blake staring at her in a mixture of horror, shock, panic and… was that hope? It had been brief, but it seemed like it.

“You’re not… surprised?” that last word had taken longer to air as if Blake had meant to say something else but thought better of it at the last second.

“Surprised? That your mother is a Faunus, or that she can flick her ears?”

A pause again, a brief glance at the cliff, as if Blake considered fleeing for a second.

“Yeah…?” A hesitation, underlined with tension. Blake was not only considering fleeing- she was ready to fight her way down if needed.

“Honestly, I pretty much guessed since the episode with Weiss,” she shrugged, trying to sound casual and silently congratulating herself as she saw her partner’s shoulder relax in the slightest. “Well, we guessed. Can’t take all the credit here. But you know, you were pretty defensive about Faunus, so we figured you probably were directly concerned? And Ruby pieced out that since your school file says you grew outside of the kingdoms, you were probably raised in Menagerie.”

Silence again, although it was a lot less tense than before and Blake didn’t look like a wounded, trapped animal anymore.

“And… you’re not mad?”

“Why would I be?” she asked, genuinely puzzled by the inquiry.

“Because… because I lied?”

“Eh, everyone’s got their touchy subjects,” she shrugged once again. “Besides, it’s not like we asked or you had to tell us? I mean, I’m not exactly blabbering about my mother either, and you can count on one hand the times Weiss mentioned her family.”

More silence. She was starting to hate this silence, side-eyeing Blake and seeing nothing but utter confusion, disbelief and a hint of shame. She had opened and closed her mouth several times already, and her hands were clenching and unclenching at her sides, a desperate battle no doubt raging in her mind. About what, Yang could only guess… But she very much disliked the fear, regret and apprehension oozing out of her posture and gestures, the slight flinches coursing through her body as soon as the blonde brawler would move. Forcing herself to immobility, she had no choice but sit through Blake’s internal turmoil, feeling like the best way to help – more like the only way to help – was to be patient, silent, and wait until her partner had reached a decision.

Which surprised her even more when instead of talking, her partner’s hands abruptly shot up to her bow – they had both somehow found themselves sitting up during the conversation – and in one swift, practised motion, untied it. And then stared at her expectantly, that same mix of resignation and terror shining in her eyes.

She was about to ask what this was about, when a slight twitch caught her eyes, leading her to look at Blake’s head instead of the ribbon she was wringing nervously. As far as she could recall, Blake had never taken her bow off, but she had not thought much of it. Ruby almost slept with her cape too. But seeing the two little triangles of black fur there, twitching and twisting in the slight breeze and turning toward whatever distant sound they picked up, dropped a sudden layer of understanding over her.

Blake was a Faunus. A cat Faunus.

Of course! That made so much sense… The never-leaving bow, the sensitivity regarding the White Fang, the pure disgust towards Carding and other pitiful bullies, even the late-night reading made sense with night vision in the equation! It made so much sense in fact, she wondered for a solid minute how she had not noticed before. Then, slowly, under Blake’s shifting gaze, some of her own words came back to her memory.

And she brought a hand to her open mouth in shock, mortified.

“Oh my god.”

“Please don’t be mad…” it had been barely a mutter.

“Oh my god, Blake I’m so sorry!”

“What?”

“I can’t believe you had to sit through all of my terrible cat-related puns. I was being an insensitive arse! How did you even put up with me?” she groaned before staring at her partner in disbelief, every instance of her making a play on words or a reference to Blake’s cat-like abilities or comportment abruptly pushed at the forefront of her memories.

“That’s…”

“I’m so terribly sorry… I messed up big time. I hope it didn’t bother you too much?”

“I was… expecting you to be mad at me?”

“Why? You’re a Faunus, so what? You’re still Blake, still my partner, still someone I’d trust with my life in a fight. So what if you’ve got an extra pair of very cute cat ears?”

“Very cute…?”

This time it was her turn to fall silent, a slight blush warming her cheek as she found herself sheepishly rubbing her neck. Jeez Yang, for once in your life, think before you talk… She breathed deeply, before deciding that she might as well commit to it.

“Yeah, I think they’re cute.”

Especially in the way they twitch, she refrained from adding, just as she refrained from reacting to the fact they had been intently pointed at her for a while now, briefly flicking toward a novel sound before rapidly focusing back on what she could only assume was her voice. She also refrained to add that it was not the only thing she thought was cute about Blake, the simple thought cranking her semblance up and warming the air around her as she did her best to not look too suspicious.

“Thank you, Yang. It… means a lot.”

Had she imagined things, or was Blake… blushing? She felt a feeling rise in her chest, a possibility suggests itself in her mind… That was dangerous. She had just reminded herself to think before she spoke, and here she was, about to give in to that feeling and recklessly say something –

“Say, how about you return the favour?”

“Uh?”

“I tell you something I’ve been keeping to myself for a while, and you promise me not to get mad?”

\- stupid. There it was! Regret. And she hadn’t even said it yet! She had however very efficiently backed herself into a corner. Good job self, push your feelings onto your partner seconds after she just trusted you with a heavy secret because you can’t help but hope. Great planning.

“Of course!” Blake stammered a hint of relief in her eyes.

Was it because they were changing the topic? Because she hadn’t been the only one keeping secrets? Because she wouldn’t be the only one spilling them under the moonlight? Yang took another deep breath, opened her mouth, and stared at the raven-haired woman for a while. Not a single sound came out, and she closed her mouth abruptly, avoiding her partner’s gaze as she nervously rubbed the back of her neck. How could she even begin to say that? ‘Hey, I think I fell in love with you’? Great, not weird at all!

Her thoughts were stopped along with her frantic rubbing that was just about to turn into scratching – a nasty habit she had never been able to get rid of – whit a simple touch of Blake’s hand, and a few words softly spoken.

“It’s okay Yang, take your time. I promise, whatever you say, I won’t get angry.”

Close. She was really, really close. She had reached over to stop her nervous movement, and in the process, had found herself very much in Yang’s personal space, their breath mingling for a little while as they stared into each other’s eyes, neither breaking contact for a long while. Finally, Yang drew a deep breath in, calming her racing heart as Blake slightly drew back, patiently waiting for her to speak up.

“Blake, I-“ she stammered, instantly hating how vulnerable she sounded yet resolute to get to the end of her sentence. “I think I’m in love with you.”

This time, it was Blake’s turn to stare at her wide-eyed.


	5. Mutual

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Have you ever convinced yourself something was absolutely impossible, only to have it happen in front of your eyes?   
> Blake is struggling with her newfound reality.

Incredulity.

That was the only emotion currently available, as her brain staggered under the abrupt and absolute contradiction of the last seconds, a jaded voice deep in her mind telling her that she had misheard, or that she was simply making things up. She had readied herself for anything moments before she decided she would take off her bow, from disgust to betrayal…

Anything, besides Yang doubling down on her affection.

When her partner had offered to share a secret of her own, she wasn’t really sure what to expect. She had thought, maybe the blonde warrior wanted to help her ease down, maybe she wanted to share a part of her past to show that everyone kept secrets. She had thought it would be a meaningful, but otherwise inconsequential story about a younger, perhaps more reckless Yang.

She had been so sure she would be hated for lying, for hiding… for being a Faunus even… Her mind was entirely blank, desperately trying to deal with an impossibility becoming real. All the while, Yang was fidgeting nervously, half muttering about how it didn’t have to mean anything and how she was sorry she had just dropped that on Blake without a warning. Not once backtracking her words, and yet trying her very best to make her partner comfortable.

Eventually, it was the blonde’s flustered agitation that sent her thoughts back on track, a brief burst of affection for the ever-caring brawler breaking through the dullness. Soon followed by a rush of other emotions, crashing on her all at the same time, delayed as they were by her surprise. Doubt came first, and she loathed herself for it, unable to accept that anyone could truly like, let alone love her. She had no reason to doubt Yang’s words, however, and she hastily brushed it aside. Then came the panic and regret, images of her past flashing before her eyes, sporting a blue-eyed, red-haired man with a cruel smirk.

Before they could linger, however, came hope. And along with it came a primal burst of joy, an incredulous kind of euphoria that overtook her senses as she considered for the first time that Yang might look at her the same way she did her. That what she had dismissed as an unrequited crush, and had tried her best to get over – unsuccessfully – in the past days may have more of a future than she had ever dared to hope.

There still was a slight hurdle to overcome. A very tiny one, that somehow made her hesitate. She had no idea how to express any of that, much less to a gradually panicking Yang that was, without a doubt, so sure her feelings were unrequited as well. Oh, irony…

She opened and closed her mouth several times, thankful for Yang’s pointedly averted gaze as she pitifully tried to say something, anything to clear up the misunderstanding. It shouldn’t have been a problem. Yang had confessed first. There was absolutely nothing she could fear. Yet, she couldn’t bring herself to say a word, much less echoing back Yang’s statement. It felt oddly appropriate that her partner would casually, openly say she loved someone. Nervously, for sure, but without dancing around the subject.

Meanwhile, she was utterly unable to say a single word, to her increasing frustration.

She pondered on several phrasings, carefully testing out sentences in her head and rapidly discarding them until she found her breaking point. The point where Yang’s worry, panic and sadness were simply too much for her to sit by idly, the point where she decided to forgo the speech that failed her.

She threw her arms around her partner almost desperately, tightening her grasp and nuzzling her neck in what she hoped would convey what she meant. She had felt more than seen the surprise coursing through Yang’s veins, pure shock momentarily stopping her apologetic rambling, before her arms hesitantly wrapped around her waist, barely touching her at first.

“I’m bad with words,” she finally muttered in Yang’s ear, eyes still closed under the raw force of the emotions she was trying to convey.

“Does that mean…?”

“Yes,” she interrupted, somehow still too embarrassed to let her partner complete her sentence.

A brief, happy chuckle rumbled deep in the blonde’s chest, before she tightened her grasp around the smaller Faunus, still visibly trying to process the revelation. Having gone through the same state of numb, shocked bliss, Blake couldn’t help but smile in turn. Yang’s sheer joy was endearing.

Then again, she had found an increasing number of things to be endearing regarding Yang.

The blonde’s rambling started again, twice as fast and a lot chipper than before. She was simply content in listening to her extensively express her worry and relief, nose buried deep in the crook of her neck and arms firmly locked around her waist. It was almost impossible, her heart threatening to burst under the improbable and impromptu happiness. Eyes closed, breathing deeply the delicate scent of citrus and sandalwood, she decided that even if all of that was simply a wishful dream, then she would relish in its happiness. For as long as it would allow her to.

Yang’s excited chatter slowly died down, the electrified energy remaining as they both held each other, seemingly reluctant to part. Even slightly. Either of their grasps would periodically tighten, silent witness to their shared amazement, until eventually one of them broke the silence again.

“Uhm, Blake?”

“Mhm?”

“Your Scroll is kind of poking my ribs…” she had muttered sheepishly.

“Oh, I’m sorry!” She almost jumped back, effectively breaking their embrace as she blushed furiously.

“It’s okay, you couldn’t know…” Yang was now sporting a similar shade of red on her cheeks, the brief moment of blissful abandon rapidly swept by the realisation of what had just happened.

“No, I should have paid more attention,” she furrowed her brows as she fished the offending device out of its pocket, even more so when it lit up with a new message. “Oh.”

“What is it?”

“Weiss is going to be furious.”

Under Yang’s inquisitive look, she turned the screen toward her partner. It took her a few seconds to notice two things: first, it was way past two in the morning. Which usually wouldn’t have meant more than a brief scolding from their teammate- but the second noticeable thing was a reminder Blake had set. For a combat test they had bright and early the next morning, or, more accurately, in a few hours. The message itself was from Ruby.

_Heya! I don’t want to be a party pooper, but Yang is not picking up, it’s late and Weiss is getting very, very frustrated. Call back ASAP!_

“Oh, she’s going to kill us…” Yang slowly groaned, before turning a sly smile toward her partner. “I have zero regrets though.”

“Not sure Weiss will appreciate that,” she rolled her eyes while pressing the call button.

Ruby picked up almost immediately, although the video request surprised Blake briefly. She flicked her eyes at Yang, who gave her a thumbs up, before pressing the green button. Immediately, Ruby’s face flickered on the screen, eyes round with a mixture of relief and worry.

“Thank the brothers, you finally picked up!” the team leader said before being interrupted by a very cross-sounding Weiss.

“And what are you thinking exactly? Do you have any idea what time it is?”

As she spoke, her younger partner took a step back, revealing the heiress walking in frustrated circles in their shared dorm.

“Sorry about that Weiss, time flies by…” Yang hazarded, drawing the white-haired woman’s irate gaze on the both of them.

“Oh, sure, time flies! That’s the exact reason we invented alarm clocks, in case you didn’t know. And where are you two even?” she paused for a second, barely leaving enough time for both partners to scramble for an answer, before pinching the bridge of her nose and softening her voice. “You know what, I don’t even want to know. Just get yourselves back here, preferably before the sun rises.”

And with that, she disappeared from the screen, soon replaced by Ruby’s wincing smile.

“Sorry guys… She was really worried about you. Come back safe!”

“Will do. Sorry for worrying you… And sorry for staying out that late.” It was Yang’s turn to wince.

“Nah, you’re not really sorry for that sis’.”

“Uh?”

Ruby rolled her eyes briefly.

“You were having too much fun for that. You’re practically radiating happiness.”

“Oh.”

“Oh indeed,” the sister smiled softly. “Now hurry and get your butt home!”

The call ended on a brief nod from Ruby, and Yang jumped to her feet. Without a word, she simply took her hand, almost dragging her toward another path down the cliff that was probably a shortcut to the clearing where Bumblebee rested. She rapidly came back to her senses, soon almost running beside her blonde partner on the way back, acutely aware of how their hands were still intertwined, and how regretfully they parted when it was time to ride home.

The trip back to the dorm was gone in a blink, so much that she highly suspected Yang had broken a few driving rules. Speed limits, at the very least. In any case, they found themselves running as quietly as possible down the corridors of Beacon, hoping to avoid crossing path with one of the numerous teachers securing the school at night.

They thankfully went by unnoticed. What surprised them was the lack of an angry Weiss waiting for them at the door. Ruby briefly told them that knowing they were on their way back, she had chosen to get as much sleep as she could, before deciding that it was a wise decision and mimicking her partner, her snores rapidly filling the air. As usual when they went out, Yang went to her bed almost immediately, although the beaming smile sent Blake’s way was new. The raven-haired Faunus swung by the shower before, knowing that boiling hot water would help her fall asleep faster. And free the bathroom for a few precious minutes the next morning.

Freshened up, she then went on to get the few hours of sleep that remained before her next obligations, stopping when she saw Yang’s closed eyes and her arm dangling from the side of the bunk bed. With a fond smile and a brief roll of her eyes, she closed the distance between them, impulsively taking the extended hand and pressing a brief kiss to the knuckles, before tucking the arm back on the bunk bed.

She slipped under her covers faster than she had ever done, hiding her blush. Pretending she hadn’t seen the mischievous smirk on Yang’s lips despite her night vision. Pretending she hadn’t heard the softly muttered “You’re so cheesy”, or the light chuckle that came with it.

Pretending she wasn’t mortified in a happy, giggly way.


	6. Masked Poorly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yang's mood is unstoppably great-
> 
> And it draws a few eyes.

Yang awoke in great spirits the following morning, an extra skip in her step and an extra beat in her heart whenever she caught a glimpse of her raven-haired partner, or simply every time she remembered the event of the previous night. To everyone’s surprise, mostly Weiss, even what little sleep she had caught wasn’t enough to dampen her spirits, nor was the impending doom of a gruelling combat test. She didn’t know herself where she found all that energy, considering she was among the first to groan, complain and oversleep whenever she stayed out a bit too late…

But today, there was no stopping her.

She felt just high. Unreachable, invincible, you name it, she had been slightly more reckless than necessary fending off the simulated Ursai, but it had been entirely worth it if only for the twinkle in Blake’s eyes and her quiet “show off”, muttered a second before she had killed a Beowulf in a somersault that Yang was almost certain had been unnecessary. Suffice to say, she was grinning from ear to ear all morning.

Her eagerness had, unfortunately, drawn a few eyes her way. Most simply shrugged, or smiled and made a small comment on her particularly great mood, but others were more… insistent. Weiss had been toeing the line between suspicious and exasperated since she had awoken, the only thing preventing her from scolding the yellow and black pair being that both of them had been awake and ready to go in record time. She kept side-eyeing them however, the crease of her brow struggling to hide her puzzlement. She was intrigued and knowing Weiss, it was only a matter of time before one of two things happened: either she would piece it together, or she would snap and demand to know the answers to her questions.

Ren had been, as usual, very quiet and very polite. It had taken him all but five minutes to figure out the reason behind the red dusting both of their cheeks every time they brushed past one another, behind the goofy grin on Yang’s face and the softness in Blake’s eyes. He had simply smiled and nodded subtly, saying nothing, and all could have stopped there…

Nora, however, had caught the discreet exchange, and a predatory smile had immediately stretched her lips. She was very visibly eager to say something, anything – probably to tease them – and had almost pounced on the occasion right then and there in the middle of the cafeteria. Fortunately for both of their dignities, Ren had cut that attempt short by distracting her with a plate of pancakes, which she ate narrowing her eyes at them and signing that she would resume her verbal assault as soon as the dessert was dealt with, and so they wasted no time in scrambling toward their afternoon class.

On their way there, slightly ahead of the other half of their team as Weiss and Ruby hadn’t felt the same urge to leave the table or risk Nora, Yang searched for her words. She was unsure of what to do about the previous evening exactly. They hadn’t told anyone yet, and she had done her best to keep quiet despite the full orchestra playing a symphony in her heart, but she felt hesitant. Neither of them had said anything about keeping this under wraps, but neither of them had made any effort of announcing it either. And what was ‘this’ exactly? Were they… dating? She felt silly, both because of the butterflies erupting in her chest at the mere thought of dating Blake, and because she somehow still doubted that it was even a possibility.

She opened her mouth, having gathered just enough will to ask the question burning her lips when she was bumped into by a sneering Cardin. The snarky comment he hissed to her ear was most likely intended to spoil her good mood, but she shrugged it off unaffected and kept on her merry way.

They reached the classroom before she found the strength to bring up the topic again.

If the fighting examination had been but a breeze to get through, sitting still for one of Dr Oobleck’s history lesson was torture to Yang’s nerves, buzzing as they were with excitement, and gradually pent up energy. To say she was restless would be an understatement, her legs bouncing eagerly under her desk and almost no notes were taken through most of the lecture. She knew this kind of behaviour wasn’t polite nor reasonable, but today there was simply no helping it. She kept glancing at Blake, seated slightly lower than her and to her right, smiling to herself like a dumbass each and every time their eyes met.

Needless to say, her lack of focus was noticed, both by Weiss that had the misfortune of sharing her desk and whose annoyed remarks did little to stop Yang’s leg from bouncing up and down, slightly shaking the entire table with every movement, and more importantly, by none other than Oobleck himself. She had seen him narrow his eyes at her once, twice, three times as he shrugged away her comportment, but the fourth time was too much for the teacher, who found himself at her desk in the blink of an eye, taking a slow sip out of his coffee mug.

“Maybe Miss Xiao Long, in her enthusiasm, would like to comment on the second battle for Faunus Rights?”

“Uhm,” she dragged, surprised and desperately searching for an escape from the corner she had backed herself into.

Her eyes darted between the members of her team, helplessly. Ruby was wincing and biting her lower lip, visibly unable to find a suitable answer she could slip to her sister inconspicuously, Weiss’s expression was somewhere between exasperated and sorry, too close to Oobleck and too much of a straight-A student to be able to help in any way. Blake’s eyes had widened, her bow twitching slightly before she started mouthing something-

Something that was evidently too long and too complex to be mouthed without notice.

Their teacher expertly took a single step to his side, effectively blocking’s Yang sight and cutting her off from Blake’s tentative help.

“Well?”

“No sir. I’m sorry, I’ve been a bit… distracted? I don’t have any pertinent comment to make.” She finally gave in, knowing when to fight and when a battle was already lost.

“I appreciate your honesty. I, however, expect two pages on my desk by the end of the week summarizing your knowledge of this particular battle and its repercussion on the war at large.”

“Understood.”

All in all, two pages weren’t that bad of an assignment to do, and Oobleck had been pretty generous with his deadline, leaving her three days to complete the extra homework. She would grumble her way through it nonetheless, sitting down and writing being dead last on her ‘things I want to do soon’ list, but it didn’t feel entirely impossible.

She, however, took the scolding very seriously and forced herself to take extensive notes for the remainder of the lecture. Her knee was still bouncing, even faster than before if that was even possible, and she had to bite the tip of her tongue to keep her focus away from her raven-haired partner, but it was what had to be done. Not to mention the soft, somehow both sympathetic and appreciative hum Weiss had let out after seeing her new efforts that was almost flattering.

Her enthusiasm had yet to die down.

She made her way out of the class with two pages of notes and trivia, gleaned through the second half of the class, still beaming at any and everything, accepting the good-natured teasing coming from her sister. She profusely thanked Weiss that had almost immediately shoved the first half of her pristine, detailed notes with a roll of her eyes and a small smile that couldn’t be hidden behind her comment on her grades affecting the entire team. Blake hadn’t said much, as per usual, keeping her voice to a few comments here and there and a slight giggle at Yang’s terrible jokes. She had, however, made a point to walk right beside her, slightly closer than strictly necessary, a sparkle in her eyes whenever their shoulders brushed.

They finally got back to their shared room, and Yang immediately plopped down at the desk, figuring that she might as well get the assignment over with right now. That made Weiss’ eyebrows raise in surprise, the start of an argument almost visible on her lips as she closed her mouth and shrugged, opting to let it go without question. Yang got out her textbook with a slight smile, splaying out all of the notes in front of her. She was going to get this over with, in an instant!

Half an hour later, she was still sitting at that damned desk, a dozen words haphazardly thrown onto the page as she struggled to find a way to organize her thoughts.

She had been very enthusiast, and making quick progress at first! She had read through Weiss’ notes, nodding as she absorbed the information – or thought she was - and then went on to her own notes to freshen her memory. Only to find all manner of coherent thought leave her the moment she had put her pen to the paper, utterly unable to form a single sentence. It wasn’t that she didn’t know what to tell, but the words just refused to get out.

Instead, she had started doodling on her page, letting out her frustration by making sketched Faunus and human warriors viciously attack one another, with a great many action lines. And, as it was infinitely more fun to do than beat herself over the head repeatedly to spurn out two poor words of a frail sentence, she kept at it for a little while, soon finding herself drawing several scenes from the battle she was supposed to recount, double-checking details like the Faunus appendage of a particularly important warrior, or the missing gauntlet of the human general, lost somewhere in the battle and exposing his scarred wrist.

Blake must have felt the change in her mood, as she was soon seen putting aside her book and curiously eyeing Yang’s work from over her shoulder. She raised an eyebrow, visibly not expecting to be looking at so many sketches and so few words, before lightly tapping on Yang’s shoulder to get her attention.

“Mhh?” the blonde answered, barely raising her eyes from the page, the only real indication that she was listening being the sudden stillness of her pencil.

“Nice sketches,” Blake simply answered, before pointing to one of the triumphant warriors, a faceless silhouette with bunny ears prodding out of his hastily sketched helmet. “Who is that?”

“Earl Dazz, later known as one of the main leaders of the Faunus forces. ‘turned the battle from disaster to victory, with a few smartly placed warriors and great knowledge of the surroundings.” She had spoken almost without thinking, her pencil starting to scratch the page again to add details here and there.

“Well, with that answer I guess this paper won’t take very long.”

“That’s the thing though,” she almost pouted. “It’s going nowhere. I can’t write a single sentence that doesn’t break three grammar rules and at least two from common sense.”

Blake hummed slightly, and she went back to her task, that currently meant adding Dazz’s second in command to his side, just as victorious if a little bruised. She was however interrupted again by Blake’s voice raising, this time addressing Weiss.

“Weiss? What were Oobleck’s instruction for Yang’s assignment?”

“Two pages about the second battle of the Faunus Right Revolution by Friday,” she recited mechanically, curiously eyeing Blake

“Anything about writing?”

“No, I guess not… What are you trying to get to?”

“If yang were to, say, draw two pages on the assignment, in the form of a comics. Would that be considered off-topic?”

The heiress pondered for a second under the insistent amber gaze, visibly put off by the unexpected question but wanting to give the truest answer she could muster. Yang had paused in her drawing, eyes jumping from and to her two teammates and expression somewhere between disbelieving and expectant.

“I guess not,” Weiss reluctantly said. “It would be highly unusual, but not technically ruled out.”

“I can actually do that?” Yang tried, disbelief clear in her tone.

As it would turn out, yes, she could actually do just that. She quickly found herself reorganizing her sketches properly, working out the layout until it depicted the even of the second battle, and then added a few contextualizing boxes before and after, showcasing the effect of said battle – and Faunus Victory – on the morale of both troops, and on the physical position and advantages of the Faunus army.

It took her a little while longer to transfer it to two clean pages, and even longer to properly line her drawings, but it didn’t matter. She was finally making progress, and the mere idea of turning in something that unexpected filled her with excitement.

To be fair, the reason she felt so electrified right this moment could also be pinpointed at her right side, where Blake had wordlessly slipped once she had finished her first page. She had asked for permission to add a few colours in, and once Yang had nodded, she had effortlessly slithered at her side, a chair seemingly appearing out of nowhere in her hands as she settled down. Way closer than needed, but Yang wasn’t about to complain.

Having her pressed to her side sent shivers through her spine, and she couldn’t help but smile as the bookworm focused on her task, so engrossed that she seemingly didn’t notice that she had stuck her tongue out at some point. It was such of emotions coursing through her veins, it felt almost maddening. She was so close, and yet so far… behind the unanswered questions, behind Weiss’ suspicious scrutiny. Yang had been on overdrive all day, yet Blake seemed unaffected. Calm and cool as always, tranquil and collected. Adorably focused from time to time, surprisingly witty every now and then. The blonde warrior felt like her heart was about to burst out of her chest, once again wondering just how fast and how far she could fall in love.

She said nothing, smiling and enjoying the moment.

**Author's Note:**

> It's not much, but I've been wanting to rework this story for a little while. It was my first fanfic ever, and I have thus a particular affection for it, despite the fact that I cringe every single time reading the original, as I've made a lot of progress in both storytelling and basic English grammar since. I hope you will enjoy this piece of my past!


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